Grid-Tie Systems: Bringing Solar Energy into Homes Everywhere

Grid-tie systems are currently among some of the most advanced and most popular solar power systems that you can find on the market right now. Many grid-tie systems will also be described as a "grid-tied PV system." These solar powered grids can be used either with or without batteries, and for most of these the key difference comes in the type of inverter used.

Grid-tie systems use these inverters to "sell" excess power by your solar array back to the general utility grid. Basically this replacement of power taken from the utilities by power your solar grids have produced for themselves can end up saving you a small bundle, especially with homes that require a lot of energy during different parts of the year.

One thing to know right off the bat is that most of these grid-tie systems are not specifically designed to fully power a full sized house all the time, but these are more of a supplemental addition to your house's power, saving you money and cutting the bills way down. During power outages, the stored energy from your grid-tie system can also provide basic limited power until the outage is fixed. Having a little bit of power is better than having none at all.

Most grid-tie systems are very easy to install, and come with your choice of having battery back up, or no back up. The maintenance levels vary accordingly, but are minimal to nominal by either standard. The other nice part about grid-tie systems is that you have an option on where to place them. These can be mounted right on the roof, or they can be put out in the yard, a little bit more out of sight but still collecting the sun's energy day by day.

The one problem some people have is with the utility company. You should contact your electric company and make sure that they will allow you to connect a solar grid-tie system to their electric grid. Most companies have to allow this, but cooperatives are exempt from this law, meaning you may be out of luck depending on how they decide.